Fire In The Fingers
by Jetman21
Summary: she remembers being cold. she wants to know the rest
1. Fire

Disclaimer:

I don't own Power Rangers. Power Rangers belongs to Saban Brands. The OC Alice was created by CrimsonRangerFan, who also came up with the idea for the plot.

* * *

Alice Wood was sitting at Storm Chargers, working on her homework, when Hunter Bradley came in and sat down next to her. She kissed him.

"What are you working on?" Hunter asked.

"An essay," Alice said. He looked over he shoulder. She got a phone call, and walked away to somewhere a bit quieter to answer it.

"Hey, Hunter, can you come over here for a second?" Alice asked. "I need your advice on something." He walked over to her.

Meanwhile, Jarred, a servant of Lothor, made his way into Storm Chargers, and reached into Hunter's bag while his back was turned, taking his morpher. He left.

' _I need to make her fall in love with me,' Jarred thought. 'It's the only way to destroy her and her team. But first, I need to use the one person she already, truly loves.'_

He pulled out his communicator. "I've got it," he said to Zurgane.

He saw Alice coming, so he ran, and Zurgane sent a group of Kelzacks at her. She morphed, and he morphed.

Jarred charged at the Kelzacks, helping Alice fight them off. Alice demorphed.

"Alice," he said. "I'm here for you."

"Your voice sounds different," she said.

"It's just one of those days," Jarred said, stroking her helmet. "Come on, let's go." He wrapped his arms around her and embraced her.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"What do you think I'm doing," Jarred said. "Hugging you, embracing you."

"Why are you still morphed?" she asked.

"I feel more powerful," he said.

"Hunter…" Alice said. "Are you okay?"

"Better than ever," he said. Still morphed, Jarred grabbed Alice's face and kissed her.

Hunter leapt out and kicked Jarred down, demorphing him.

"Hunter?" Alice asked.

"I'm here for you," he said, hugging her.

Jarred got up. "I give up," he sighed, teleporting away.

"That guy is trouble," Hunter sighed.

Jarred rematerialized a few feet away, with a burst of ice. He looked down at his teleporter; given to him by Lothor to enhance his snow ninja powers, he'd mostly been using to it spy on Alice. What had started as a trick to destroy her had turned into a genuine interest.

As he looked on her at her, he sighed. He couldn't destroy her. He loved her.

...

Also among the people who loved Alice was Hunter Bradley. Luckily for her.

Alice and Hunter went back to Hunter's house. Alice was texting her friends from school. Hunter smiled at her, before going to his bookshelf and flipping through a book on better meditation techniques.

"How's training going?" he asked her.

"Good," she said. "I'm gaining more control over my fire power."

"That's cool," Hunter said. "That's very cool."

"Apparently, there might be a mental barrier I need to get through," Alice said. "Like, because of everything that happened, people messing with my head, I need to think things through."

Hunter nodded. He remembered what they'd went through just weeks earlier, how Alice was tortured, and had her mind erased. It made him sick.

"Huh," he said, before going back to his book.

A few days later, Hunter, Blake and Alice were training together. Alice was practicing with the use of her fire power. She had a board in front of her, and in seconds, in turned to flame.

"That was cool," Hunter said, walking towards her.

"Something feels off," Alice said, looking at the ashes. "Sensei was right. I'm not in a good enough headset."

"It seems to me you did a pretty good job," Blake said.

"It was a small wooden board, it was easy to set on fire," Alice explained. "And even then, for a second, I felt things going out of control."

"But they didn't," Hunter said.

"They could've," Alice said. "If I'm working with anything more complicated, they will. Unless I practice hard."

"Okay, then," Hunter said. "How about this. I'll stay with you, and help," he said.

"Okay," she said.

Blake left about an hour later. Hunter stayed all night, working with Alice on her concentration, and trying to help her.

He recalled his book on meditation techniques, and thought it might be handy to use some on her.

"Relax your mind," Hunter said. "Lean against the wall."

Alice leant against the wall and tried to relax her mind, thinking of calming things. The beach. An open field atop a hill. Hunter. She smiled.

"Now, think about the things bothering you the most," Hunter said. Alice thought about Lothor, who was threatening the world. About Jarred, who mostly threatened her. She remembered the rest of Lothor's army. She remembered the normal people, they people who didn't need powers to make her feel small.

She remembered predatory behavior, and arguments that descended into screaming matches. She remembered love triangles.

She remembered being late to school every day. She remembered her school being destroyed by an evil man from space.

She remembered everyone and everything Lothor took from her - well, as much as she could, with the memory loss she'd gained from him.

And in the back of her mind, she saw Jarred, laughing over he pain, and trying to exploit her at her most vulnerable.

"Now, imagine flames, rising around you, at the times you feel most at war," Hunter said, trying to remember from the book. Alice thought of her and Jarred, fighting, as flames rose over them.

"You can't control the flames," Hunter said.

"I can't control the flames," Alice said.

Jarred pushed her into the fire, and she started to burn.

"Please stop," she said to Jarred. He didn't listen, but the fire did, becoming colder.

"The fire listened to me," she said to Hunter.

"You cannot control the fire," Hunter said. "But you can be it's guide. You can ask it things. You can move it, show it where to go."

"And what if I lose that?" Alice asked.

"Keep trying," Hunter said.

"I think I'm ready to try practicing with my powers again," Alice said.

"Not here," Hunter said.

...

The two of them wandered over to the hill they went to together to think. Hunter sat down in the grass, and Alice sat next to him.

It was three in the morning, and the grass was wet. The night sky loomed above them.

Alice rubbed her hands together, then started creating fire around her and Hunter.

Hunter smiled widely, as he saw her more relaxed with the fire.

"I think I'm getting it," she said. Flashes of Lothor and Jarred went through her brain. "It's like…they're telling me I can't," she said.

"Who's saying that?" Hunter asked.

"The people we're fighting," Alice said. "Everyone."

Hunter kissed her. "You can do this," he said. Alice rose up, and created more and more fire.


	2. Water

Chapter Two: Water

The team was hanging out in Storm Chargers, Alice bursting in holding up crumpled flyers.

"Look, someone's been going all over town, nailing these flyers to bulletin boards," she said.

"What do they say?" Dustin asked, walking up to her. She handed him one, and then went around to the rest of the team, handing them to them.

"Give in, do not challenge the occupation," Tori read off the flyer. "Lori is coming, is coming, is coming….is coming, he'll take over," she said. She flipped it to the other side. "The take-over has already started, your heroes can't protect you, submit now, and you will be spared some discomfort."

"Cute," Blake said.

"Any word on who this punk is?" Hunter asked.

"A guy in my building saw someone putting up one of them," Alice said. "He gave me a description that sounded a lot Jarred."

"That guy?" Dustin asked. "Makes sense, I guess."

"Maybe they're planning something," Hunter sighed.

-/-/-/-/

Alice's House - Living Room

"Are you okay?" Tori asked, as she poured Alice a glass of water and handed it to her.

"I guess I'm just feeling real insecure today," Alice said. "And I'm not sure why."

Tori sat next to her. "How's training going?" she asked.

"Awesome," Alice said flatly.

"It doesn't sound awesome," Tori said.

"Apparently I'm too single minded," Alice said. "Basically, it means I can only do one or two things with my powers."

"Is that a bad thing?" Tori asked.

"Yeah, probably," Alice said.

"Well, maybe try and think of more," Tori said. "Like, take this glass. If it was a flame, what would you do with it?"

"Make it burn brighter," Alice said, as she held on tighter. "Or blast it maybe."

"Think about moving it around," Tori said. "Maybe imagine that."

Alice closed her eyes and imagined moving the fire around.

"Flow," Tori said. "Try to find a flow." Alice reflected on how the flames could flow, then sighed, and drank the water.

-/-/-/-/

Alice's House - Bedroom

"What were you talking to Tori about?" Hunter asked, later that night. They were sitting on her bed, looking out the window.

"She gave me some advice," Alice explained. "She talked to me about trying to find a flow with my powers."

"Really?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah," Alice said. "I mean, it's kind of like..water. Water and fire are opposites, but maybe her perspective manipulating water will help me manipulating fire"

"I guess," Hunter said.

"Come here," she said. He moved up to her and she kissed him.

They laid down on the bed, lips firming pressed against each other.

"I love you," Alice said.

"I love you too," Hunter said. The two of them went back to kissing, rocking back and forth and falling off the bed.

Jarred watched the two of them from a tree opposite the window, then walked away.

* * *

A/N: This one was a bit rushed, sorry, but it's building up to something.


	3. Spirit

Hunter and Alice curled up together, watching TV. Hunter was looking over an old photo album, with pictures of his mother. He was also paying a home video of her, from years and years earlier.

"I feel like I know your parent better than I know my parents now," she said, tracing her fingers over the items in the album,

"What?" Hunter asked, turning his head to face her. "Why?"

"I dunno, just all these photos and videos, I have such a sense of your adopted mom," Alice sighed, looking up at him.

"I think you would have liked them," Hunter sighed. Alice smiled, running a hand through her hair.

"Yeah," she said, nodding

"What's wrong with your folks?" Hunter asked, moving closer to her.

"Nothing, they're just boring," Alice said, moving closer to him. "I don't dislike em, I just….don't really talk to them is all."

"Think you know em at all?" Hunter asked, leaning his head back.

"Better before I lost my memories," Alice said, with a sigh. "and it wasn't just that it was…everything. My new hair, my new powers…"

"They knew about your powers?" Hunter asked, wrapping her arms around him.

"No, not really," Alice said, resting her head on his shoulder. "But they know something about me's changed."

"Well, we always have this," he said, gesturing to the video of his mother.

"Yeah," Alice said, holding onto him even more tightly.

* * *

Alice walked into Storm Chargers, seeing Shane talking to a guy, dressed similarly, but he had a sleeveless shirt.

"Alice, this is Chris," Shane said.

"Hi Chris," Alice said.

"Hi Alice," Chris said.

Shane heard his phone beep. "Oh, I've got to take this," he said, stepping outside.

"You're Shane's friend?" Chris asked.

"What was your first guess?" Alice asked. Chris chuckled.

"You single?" Chris asked.

"Dating someone, sorry," Alice said.

"Oh, I wasn't asking you out," Chris said. "I have a girlfriend, Abbey."

"Oh, cool," Alice said.

"Hey, can I ask you a question?" Chris asked.

"Sure," Alice said.

"If your boyfriend was going to give you a holiday gift, what would you want it to be?" Chris asked.

"Something personal, I guess," Alice sighed. "I don't know, I'm really bad about receiving gifts."

"Well, thanks anyway," Chris said. He smiled.

* * *

The King knocked on the bathroom door, hearing Jarred's music blaring.

"And if a double decker bus!" Jarred exclaimed, along with the song he was playing, "Crashes into us! To die by your side! Oh what a heavenly way to die!"

"Are you okay in there?" The King asked.

"Yeah," Jarred said. "Just finishing up!" he shut off the shower water. "And if a ten ton truck! Kills the both of us!" He turned to the picture of Alice stapled to the bathroom door. "Dying by your side!" He jumped up, tripping on a bottle, and falling to the ground. "The pleasure! The privilege is mine!"

He wrapped his towel around and walked out of the bathroom, getting dressed. Then, he walked up to The King, who was on the phone, leaning against the main door.

"Who're you talking to?" Jarred asked.

"Okay. Bye," The King said, hanging up. "That was..um..my girlfriend in Canada."

"Do you want to know what I think?" Jarred asked, walking up to The King.

"Not necessarily," The King said, putting his phone away.

"Either you have a girlfriend in Canada, in which case she'll be very disappointed in learning about your life here. Or you don't, and you're lying, and you're sad."

"She's not going to be mad, I never actually did anything with Alice," The King sighed. "That's the reason I haven't."

"I think maybe you just can't, and you're looking for an excuse," Jarred said.

"She's a power ranger, who can control fire, and her boyfriend's a beat," The King said. "I think if I was actually available, I'd go for a girl who was a bit more available."

"You're too much," Jarred said, exiting the room. The King followed him out.

"Look, don't you think it's weird that Lothor's being very slow about what aliens he sends down and when?" Jarred asked. "Like, why not send them all down at once."

"That's not how we do things here," The King said. "I thought you knew, you're from here. I guess a full on onslaught isn't what L-man wants."

"And you think this is a good plan?" Jarred asked.

"It's like….mythology, right?" The King said. "These gods…the gods only came to earth when they were angry."

"What gods are we talking about here?" Jarred asked.

"My gods," The King said. "My mythology. And the rangers, in this analogue, would be…the demigods?"

"If I'm a ranger, am I a demigod?" Jarred asked.

"Not quite," The King said. "Not yet."

* * *

The next day, Alice was at the library, and saw Chris sitting at a table by himself. His face was wet, and his eyes were red. She sat next to him.

"Is everything okay?" she asked.

"No," Chris sighed. "I just..I just…Abbey."

"Did she break up with you?" Alice asked.

"No," Chris said. "But…she's not answering any of my calls."

"What happened?" Alice asked.

"It's nothing," Chris said. He looked at her hand. "Is that a book on meditation?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said. "Meditation helps me…do stuff."

"Cool," Chris said. "Can I get your phone number? You seem really understanding, and I'd love to talk to you about stuff."

"Sure," Alice said.

* * *

Hunter walked down the street in the pouring sunshine, up to the building where he was having his guitar lessons. He entered the room, sitting in a leather seat as an instructor explained the basics, and handed him a guitar, saying he should treat it with care.

"I think I've got this," Hunter sighed. "Should be easy, right?"

'Don't say that if you want to leave this room without me hating you," he sighed.

"Oh," Hunter said. "Au..kay." He started strumming.

"Strum carefully, like an angel," the instructor told him, reaching his hands out and touching Hunter.

"Okay," Hunter sighed, going softer.

"Now strum like a demon," the instructor said, taking another deep breath.

Hunter pressed harder against the strings, hitting his instrument with greater force, snapping one of the strings."

"No, no, no!" he cried out, reaching out for the guitar.. "Demons are supposed to be even softer."

"I don't know…anything..about demons," Hunter said, looking down at the guitar.

He slumped in his chair. "No, of course not, you kids are all about the aliens these days, aren't you?"

"I'm sorry, what?" Hunter asked, leaning forward.

"You're obviously not a natural," he said, pointing to the door.

"Aren't you supposed to teach me?" Hunter asked, looking at the door.

"I can't control you, only show you where to move and how you can act," he explained. "But you're hopeless." He tried turning his chair around.

"Maybe I can start over," Hunter said, resting the guitar in his lap. Another string snapped off.

"Go now," the instructor said, pointing to the door once more. "It's not your fault kid, you just don't have the build for it. Go, throw a football. Or a cinderblock. That's where your talents are needed."

"Heard ya loud and clear, pal," Hunter grunted as he made his way out of the room.

Hunter was making his way down the street, when he saw The King. The King pulled out his whip, and hit Hunter several times.

"No!" Hunter called out. The two of them started struggling together. Hunter tries to remove the whip from his hands. He took out his morpher.

The King whipped the morpher out of his hands, then teleported away.

Hunter walked over to Storm Chargers, and saw Alice sitting down, doing homework. She sat next to her, and helped her with it.

Chris walked in, seeing the two of them.

"Hi," he said to Alice. She smiled.

"Hi Chris," she said.

"Who's that?" Hunter asked.

"Just a new friend," Alice said. She kissed Hunter on the neck. The two of them went back to doing homework.

* * *

Abbey and Shane were standing outside Storm Chargers.

"Thanks for understanding some," Abbey sighed, rubbing her eye.

"No prob, brah," Shane said. The two hugged. Abbey walked away.

Alice walked up to Shane.

"You were talking to Abbey?" she asked. He nodded. "I can't believe she's acting like this."

"What do you mean?" Shane asked.

"She's being so insensitive to Chris, his mother died," Alice said.

"Is that what he told you?" Shane asked. "He's been using that as an excuse for a month. I mean, yeah, he's right to be upset, but he's been forcing her to walk around eggshells with him for weeks."

"I guess she has a right to upset, then," Alice said.

"Yeah," Shane said. "Maybe you should talk to Abbey. I think you'd hit it off."

"Okay," Alice said.

* * *

Alice made her way over to a sports bar, where Abbey was sitting alone. She sat down.

"Shane said you might be here," Alice said.

"Hey," Abbey said. "You're dating the blond guy, right?"

"Yeah," Alice said. She looked up at Abbey's head. "Nice hat," she said.

"It's Chris'," Abbey said, gesturing to her cowboy hat.

"Suits you," Alice said. "It's a nice hat."

"Can I buy you a drink?" Abbey asked.

"I don't drink," Alice said. "I've got alcoholism problems on both sides of my family."

"Honor their legacy," Abbey said. Alice giggled.

"I've got to go, actually, I have training session," Alice said, looking down at her watch.

"What are you training for?" Abbey asked.

"It's complicated," Alice said.

"Hey, do you want this hat?" Abbey asked.

"Sure," Alice said.

She made her way over to Ninja Ops, changed into her training outfit but still wearing the cowboy hat.

"Are you ready to begin?" Sensei asked.

They went through all the motions they usually went through in her private training sessions, and once more, she felt greater power over the fire.

"What do you know about relationships?" Alice asked. "I'm having a little bit of trouble."

"I always predicted that your relationship with Hunter would not last," Sensei sighed. "It is a shame. You seemed so happy."

"Not me and Hunter!" Alice said. "Abbey and Chris, two of Shane's friends. I feel like they can stop fighting, but I'm not sure what to say to them."

"Tell them to remember who they are, always," Sensei said. Alice sighed.

"It's kind of like fire," Alice said. "I can't actually control it."

"Exactly," Sensei said. "But just like fire, a push can accomplish a lot." Alice smiled.


	4. Sprituality

Alice spun around in a chair at Ninja Ops, looking at a ring in her hands. Dustin walked into the room.

"What's with the ring?" he asked.

"The King dropped it in our last fight," she sighed. "He dropped it in our last fight. I saw it glowing when it fell."

"Weird," Dustin said. Alice's phone beeped.

"Hunter wants to know if I'm busy," she said, reading her texts.

"Are you?" Dustin asked.

"No," she said. "I think I'm gonna go meet up with him."

She walked out of the base, and over towards Hunter, feeling the ring glow again. She put it in her pocket.

Hunter took her to an Italian restaurant, and she ordered a salad. When she was part of her way through eating, she saw the ring glowing again. She walked up to the restaurant window.

"Are you okay?" Hunter asked.

"Something's coming," Alice said.

"Like what?" Hunter asked.

"This ring," Alice said, pulling it out of her pocket. The light shot up from it, and in front of Alice a man appeared. He wore a simple light blue outfit, and wings protruded from his back.

"Who are you?" Alice asked.

"I don't know," he sighed. "I can't remember." Hunter looked and saw everyone in the restaurant staring at the man.

"Oh no," Hunter sighed.

"Oh," the man said, seeing Hunter staring at the people staring at him. In a flash, they all vanished.

"Where are they?" Alice asked.

"I don't know," he sighed. "But they are safe, do not worry. I'm not supposed to use my powers to harm people. There are..measures against it. Maybe if I tried…"

"Why should we believe you?" Hunter asked.

"You've seen what I can do," he said.

"I have an idea on what we can do," Alice said. The three of them made their way over to Ninja Ops, and Hunter called Sensei so that he'd be ready for them.

"Sensei, this guy appeared out of nowhere!" Hunter said.

"He didn't really appear out of nowhere," Alice said. She pulled up the ring. "He came from here."

"Where did you find that ring?" Sensei asked.

"The King dropped it," Alice said. "I think it came from his home country."

"Leave it with me," Sensei said. "There is still much left unanswered." He turned to the winged man. "And you, why have you forsaken your ninja roots."

"I only learned the way of the ninja as part of my training with my master," he said.

"You remind me of somebody I used to know, Jasec," Sensei said. "And you could have been a great ninja of air."

"Good enough to be a ranger?" Jasec asked.

"That is a complicated question," Sensei said. "But the students I have now know who they are, more than you ever did."

"Do you still want us here?" Alice asked.

"I think we should stay," Hunter said. "I want answers."

"Don't be so aggressive," Alice said, holding his shoulders.

"Isn't that our job?" Hunter asked. "I'll be angry if I want to be."

"You can stay if you wish," Sensei said. Jasec nodded.

"I want to," Alice said.

"If she's staying, I guess I will," Hunter said.

Jasec and Sensei stared at each other. "Whatever became of your son?" Jasec asked. "Find any use for him?"

"He is an admirable spirit, and my rock, in these days," Sensei sighed.

"Did something happen between you two?" Alice asked.

"He was a student who didn't listen," Sensei sighed.

"And he was a teacher who couldn't understand," Jasec sighed.

"Why do you have wings?" Alice asked, walking closer to him.

"I earned them, out there, in the dangerous corners of our worlds," Jasec sighed. "I trained for them."

"And you trained with him?" she asked, pointing to Sensei.

"In part," Jasec sighed. "I had to understand as much as possible."

"Hunter, Alice, go and aquaint Jasec with this world, as it has changed," Sensei said. "Leave me here."

The three of them left. Sensei looked down at the ring.

"How could he have been so careless?" he asked the ring. "If it fell into Alice's hands, it could have as easily fallen into Lothor's...again."

Hunter, Alice and Jasec sat down on Alice's bed. It had more candles in it than it did the last time Hunter was there.

"So, how did you get into that ring?" Alice asked.

"Well, it is complicated," Jasec sighed. "One my travels, I felt lost, so I prayed to my master for a sign. He sent me on my way to a small town, and Lothor attacked this town. I defended it, and I realized that was why I was sent there. After that, I decided to go after Lothor everywhere he went."

"What does this have to do with the ring?" Hunter asked.

"I carried the ring with me, and it gave me strength," Jasec said. "Lothor realized it gave me powers during one of our regular skirmishes, so he took it, and used it against me. He trapped me inside it, and it gave him power. But it also meant I was connected to his mind. I used this connection to plague his mind in every way I could. The ring was taken from him with time to spare for him, but my effect was there. My thoughts, my conscience, they troubled him."

"Who took the ring from him?" Hunter asked.

"I would tell you if I knew," Jasec sighed. "All I know was that he was very arrogant, and that he was said to be a great king, whatever that means."

"Oh my god," Alice said.

"I would rather not go into it further," Jasec sighed. "Just as Lothor is still struggling with my influence, I still struggle with his."

"Well, can I show you what I can do?" Alice asked. Jasec nodded. Alice closed her eyes, and lit all the candles. Then, she got off the bed, and turned off the light switch. In a second, the light burned brighter. She smiled.

"This is you?" Jasec asked. Alice nodded. "Can you show me?" he asked.

She directed him to her floor, and she sat down, crossed legged. She sat across from him, and he mirrored her movements, Hunter watching. She started meditating, feeling the flow of the flames. In moments, they left the candles, and flew across the room.

"Feel it," she said.

"I do," he sighed. "I feel it."

"Feel what the fire is made of," she said. He smiled, as he felt it, and he felt her feeling it too.

"What do you see when you close your eyes?" Alice asked.

"I see my master...my father," Jasec said. "He stand above me...he is me."

"Is he…?"

"He's gone now," Jasec sighed, opening his eyes. "I can't see him. I lost him."

"What are you talking about now?" Hunter asked.

Jasec got up and turned to Hunter.

"It was you!" he said, pointing. "As soon as I mentioned him, you used your powers, you destroyed him with your mind."

"I can't do that," Hunter said. "And I don't know why I would."

"You're aggressive, she said it herself," Jasec said.

"He wouldn't do that," Alice said, standing up.

"I lost sense of him the moment I started talking about him," Jasec said.

"Maybe it was a spiritual thing," Alice said.

"No," Jasec said. He closed his eyes for a moment. "Okay, I restored everything I altered back to it's orginal form. The people at the restaurant...everything. Now, to go find him again."

"I'm sorry," Alice said.

"It wasn't your fault," Jasec said, turning back to her. "And maybe it wasn't his either, but it has made me realize...I'm not supposed to be here. I still have a mission, just like you do."

Alice walked closer to him.

"Goodbye," he said. He leaned in a kissed her. They backed away simultaneously. His wings started to glow. "I have to go home," he said.

"Okay," Alice said. Hunter walked up to him.

"I still have so many questions," he said, flatly. "You..you haven't said enough...you have these powers..this stake in the battle."

"I have a stake in a larger battle," he said. "But maybe, if you were more cooperative, I'd be willing to fight in yours."

"I didn't accuse you of anything," Hunter said. "I didn't kiss your girlfriend."

"Goodnight," Jasec said, teleporting away.

"I wish you weren't so angry all the time," Alice sighed.

"My anger saved my life," Hunter said. "My anger…"

"I get it," Alice said. "And I get angry too. It's just…"

"It's just what?" Hunter asked.

"It's hard to exist with you, sometimes," Alice sighed.

"I've done everything to be accommodating for you," Hunter said. "I'd put my life on hold for you every time I need to. Or want to. So every day."

"I know," Alice sighed. "I know." He made her feel safe. But he also made her feel powerless.

 _"You have no power over the fire. You can't control it, only suggest places for it to go."_

That night, she went into Ninja Ops. It was empty, and the ring had been stashed in a security department. She go it out, and put it on her finger, meditating with it.

He felt power surging through her, and heard voices in her head, those of Jasec, and Lothor, and The King.

Then she saw Sensei and Cam, and she saw Hunter and Blake, and their mother, and she saw Shane, Dustin and Tori. The ring started glowing, and her body did the same.

Then she thought of fire, and felt flames moving through her fingers. She smiled.

Hunter stood at the entrance to Ninja Ops. "Hey there," she said, moving towards her.

"What do you want?" Alice asked.

"I don't want you, or anyone else, to feel sad," Hunter sighed. "So I'm here to many things right."

"How?" she asked.

He opened his hand out to her, and smiled. She took his hand, and smiled.

"What do you think is going to happen to Jasec?" Alice asked.

"I think he's gonna wander back here, one day or another," Hunter said.

* * *

Jasec made his way up to a mountain, his wings flapping in the wind. Jarred walked over to him.

"I sensed your energy!" he said to him.

"Who are you?" Jasec asked.

"I'm Jarred, I'm a snow ninja!" he said. "I know Alice Wood and Hunter Bradley...I was watching them and saw your interaction. Alice is perfect, but Hunter needs to be stopped."

"Stopped?" Jasec asked.

"He's dangerous, aggressive, angry, possessive," Jarred said. "He's stifling Alice creatively, and as a ranger. I'm going to save her, and marry her one day."

"I wish you luck," Jasec said. "My pursuits lie elsewhere."

"I think we can help each other...a demigod and an angel," Jarred said. "Come with me, to meet The King."


	5. Infatuation (Part One)

Chris and Abbey gazed into each other's eyes. They were laying on a picnic blanket on the grass, in a park. They reached out to each other, holding hands.

"You think this is for the best?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said. He started getting up.

"You don't have to leave immediately," she said.

"I've got nothing left to say to you," Chris said. "And I don't mean that in a snarky way, or a mean way, I just don't."

"Right," she sighed, shivering. He walked away.

* * *

Alice returned to her house from her morning jog. The sun was bright, and the air was warm. Looking down at her phone, she saw she had a missed call from Chris. She called him.

"Hey, do you want to hang out?" he asked.

"Sure," she said.

That evening, the two of them went to a restaurant together. It was dimly lit, and decorated with art from amateur painters.

"This place is nice," she said, as she sat at a table, opposite him.

"Yeah," he said, smiling. She looked at him, and saw he was wearing a black pants, dress shirt and a blazer. He had a jacket and a large coat on his chair."Do you want to order?" he asked.

"Uh, yeah," she said. She took a deep breath then looked at the menu.

"A lot of good things on the menu," he said, leaning forwards to her.

"Yeah," she said. "But a lot of them are expensive. I don't have enough money with me to pay for them."

"I'll pay!" Chris said, smiling. "It seems like the only polite thing to do, I'm taking you here."

"I guess," Alice said. "I'll get the steak then."

"Oh, that's a good choice. I had that when I came here with Abbey," Chris sighed.

"Oh," Alice said. A waiter walked up to them.

"Can I get you anything?" he asked, his voice very loud. He jumped a little every time he spoke.

"Steak," Alice said.

Chris smiled at her, then turned to the waiter, he leaned closer to him. "I'll get a salad," he said.

"Excellent," the waiter said. He walked away, laughing to himself.

"Weird guy," Chris said, with a chuckle. She chuckled along with him, for a moment.

She took a deep breath. "Chris, is this—"

"Alice, you're a really good friend," she said. "Between my dad and Abbey, I don't know how I'd deal without you, or if anything bad happened between us."

"Well, I'm here for you," Alice said, getting her lips into a smile.

The two of them got their food, and ate it. It took them about an hour.

"Do you want dessert?" Chris asked. "On me."

"No I've got to get going," she sighed. "You know, it's pretty late."

"Your house is pretty far away," he noted.

"How did you know that?" Alice asked.

"You told me one of these days," Chris said.

"Oh," Alice said. "Yeah, it's far."

"I'll drive you," Chris said. "It's the least I can do, after all you've done for me, and after I suggested we go here."

"Okay," Alice said. "Thank you."

The two of them walked outside, and Alice started shivering. Chris handed her his large coat, leaving him in his jacket.

"Thank you," Alice said.

* * *

The next day, Tori, Abbey and Alice met at the sports bar, and Alice explained what happened the previous night.

"I thought you were dating Hunter," Abbey said.

"Yes, I am," Alice said.

"It sounds like you went on a date with Chris," Abbey said.

Tori nodded. "I'm with Abbey," she said.

"It's not my fault he's in love with me," Alice said. "I can't control him, just push him back and forth."

"Wait, is that a sex thing?" Abbey asked.

"No," Alice said. "What?"

"Just say you're not interested," Tori said.

"I didn't want it to be awkward," Alice said. "He says I'm all he has."

"He has lots of friends," Abbey said. "Some guys threw him a party a few weeks ago. Two other girls want to date him, and I've met his family, they're amazing."

"So he was lying?" Tori asked.

"He'd probably say he was exaggerating," Abbey sighed.

"This guy sounds like a train wreck," Tori said. "Why did you two date him?

"I never dated him," Alice said. She pulled out her phone. "I'm going to end this right now. I'm gonna text him."

"Good," Abbey said.

"Tori, you always know what to say in situations like this," Alice said, handing her the phone.

"Since when?" Tori asked.

"Just text him, for me please, I don't know what to say," she sighed.

The phone beeped. "Oh, he texted you," Tori said. She typed her response.

"What did you say?" Abbey asked.

"He wanted to talk about how your relationship was going, and that you'd meet by the water front this after noon, I said yes," Tori sighed.

"Okay," Alice said. "That's okay."

* * *

She made her way over to the waterfront, where she saw a note, in Jarred's handwriting. It said:

 _My dearest, Alice,_

 _I'm sorry I let it come to this. Truly._

 _Honestly, I couldn't handle this kind of competition._ _I'm second in line, and s_ _oon to be the only one._

 _xxx_

On the ground, and by the note, there were a few feathers, and a little bit of blood.


	6. Confrontation (Part Two)

The seven rangers gathered in Ninja Ops with Sensei.

"Jarred and Jasec abducted Chris," Alice sighed. "I want them brought down."

"We cannot do anything until we have all the information," Sensei sighed.

"I say we barge onto Lothor's ship," Hunter sighed. "Even if he don't find him, we'll at least find answers."

"I agree," Shane said. "It's our best bet, and we might have limited time."

"I mean, if we're going to Lothor's ship on a rescue mission anyways, should be try and spring the other ninja students."

"A rescue of that size would be near impossible to pull off," Sensei sighed. "And it would be too dangerous to go onto Lothor's ship without enough information, for any reason. We run the risk of escalating that battle."

"I won't stand by and do nothing," Shane said. "Cam, is there any way you can do, like, a scan? Try and find Chris?"

"Maybe, if he's still on Earth," Cam said, checking his computer.

"What would we do without you?" Hunter asked.

"Not much," Cam said. "Isn't that the way, they say, it goes?"

"This doesn't bode well with me," Alice said. "He knew about Chris..he was jealous of Chris."

"He's sick, and we'll stop him as soon as possible," Hunter said.

"I don't just want him stopped," Alice sighed. "I want him destroyed."

"I've found something," Cam sighed.

Dustin ran up to Cam. "Chris?" he asked.

"No," Cam said. "But I did an internet search for Jarred, I found a bunch of old records, with three old addresses."

"Let's split up, then go check them out," Shane sighed.

"A good idea," Sensei said. "Godspeed, rangers."

* * *

Alice sighed as she approached a row of houses, just outside Blue Bay Harbour.

"I have a good feeling about this," she said, as she walked up to one of them. A woman was sitting by the steps, drinking from a mug.

"She looks like Jarred," Alice said. "She's..do you think she's his mother?"

"I don't think so," Blake said. "At least, we can't assume it."

The woman looked up the sky, wide eyed, teeth gritted. The sun was setting.

"There's a fire in her eyes," Alice said. "That's they way Jarred looks at me, which is…disgusting, but with her is nice."

She moved closer.

"I hope you know what you're doing," Blake said.

Alice walked up to her. "Is your last name Johnson?" she asked.

"Used to be," the woman said. She had a strong southern american accent. "Did you live in Cape Springs? You look familiar."

"Yeah," Alice said, making a feigned attempt to imitate her accent. "You look a little familiar too. Did you have a son?"

"Yeah, I did," she sighed. "Haven't seen him in forever. Jay, he's…special."

"Jay, is that short for anything?" Blake asked.

"Jarred," she sighed, a tear starting in her eye. "So, who are you? How do you two know each other?"

"This is my boyfriend," Alice said. "He's local."

"You're cute together," she said.

* * *

Tori and Dustin wandered down to an apartment complex near the outskirts of the city.

"Did Alice tell you how all this happened?" Tori asked.

"Yeah," Dustin sighed.

"It's all my fault," she sighed.

"It's Jarred's fault, and we're, like, going to take him out, like, it's not even a question," Dustin sighed.

There were a few apartments. They knocked on the doors of them, and after nobody answered, they saw one with an open door. They entered, seeing an empty room, with the walls taped up. Behind the tape there was scratches and blood.

"What is this place?" Dustin asked.

"I don't know, but I don't like it," Tori said. "It seems like it's been abandoned though."

"And the rest of these places?" Dustin asked.

"Seems like more of the same," Tori sighed.

The two of them walked away. Jasec watched them from above.

* * *

Shane and Hunter made their way over to a warehouse. They circled it a few times, then entered.

"This seems a bit suspect," Hunter sighed. He tried, knocking over a barrel, that rolled into a line of boxes.

"Oh no," Shane said. "Let's get out of here."

The barrel fell apart, and liquid fell out. The liquid fell onto the boxes, causing them to explode. Hunter and Shane ran out of the warehouse.

"Ninja Storm! Ranger Form! Ha!"

"Thunder Storm! Ranger Form! Ha!"

* * *

Alice looked up at Jarred's mother, in awe. The old woman saw Jarred, on the other side of the street, and he saw her, before running away.

"It's funny," she said. "I just felt like I saw him, right there." She pointed at him. Blake and Alice turned around, and saw him, running away. They chased after him.

"My mother is off-limits!" Jarred exclaimed.

"Do you want me to list the things you've done that are off limits?" Alice asked.

"How did you know what we were doing?" Blake asked.

"I have eyes everywhere," Jarred said. "Being acquainted with royalty gives me access to more advanced technology."

"Where's Chris?" Alice asked.

"The hospital," Jarred said.

"What?" Alice asked.

"After we beat him up, we abandoned him on a street corner, and someone called the police," Jarred explained. "It's the one closest to here."

Alice ran up to Jarred, and punched him. He blocked the punch, and twisted her arm. Blake attacked him from behind, and the two of them started kicking him.

"Help!" Jarred called out. "Help!" Jasec and The King arrived. The King whipped Alice, and Jasec started hitting Blake.

Shane and Hunter arrived, and pulled away The King and Jasec respectively, hitting them. Hunter helped Blake get out from under Jasec, and the two started wailing on the angel. Blake morphed.

Shane and Alice started beating up the King. He pulled out his whip, and Alice grabbed it.

Jarred kicked her, then took it back, knocking the two of them to the ground, before handing it to The King. Shane grabbed The King and started pulling him down, and he fell down. He wormed away from Shane, and sighed, as Alice struggled with Jarred, who rubbed his face against hers. She threw him off, and morphed.

Jasec began to overwhelm Hunter and Blake, and Shane and Alice ran over to the two of them. The four of them, morphed, faced off against him.

Whip in hand, The King ran up to Jasec, and started whipping him from behind, his wings fluttering.

"What are you doing?" Jasec asked.

"I want to be on the winning side," he sighed.

Jarred ran up to Jasec, and shielded him. Jasec turned around and started beating up The King, taking the whip from him.

"You know, I know you've gotten a lot of mileage out of this thing, but at the end of the day, whips aren't good weapons," he sighed. "Come on, let's go," he said, grabbing Jarred, and carrying him away. The four rangers looked up at him.

"Where's The King?" Hunter asked. They looked around, not seeing him. They demorphed and wandered around the streets, looking for him. Alice saw Dustin and Tori at a wall, tied up. She started uniting them.

"Jasec got to us," Dustin sighed.

"We fought them," Alice said. "They escaped, and Chris is in the hospital."

"That doesn't sound good," Tori said.

"It was weird," she said. "I'll catch you up later." She ran away, up to the hospital. She looked up at Chris, laying into his hospital bed.

She sighed.

"Did you know him?" a nurse asked, walking up to her.

"Something like that," she said to him. She walked up to the window, pressing her hands against the glass.

"For what it what was worth, that was one of the best dates I've been on in a while," she said, with a feeble smile.


	7. Snow

Alice was walking down a bridge, humming to herself.

She looked down at her phone, seeing she had no new messages. She was going to meet up with the rest of the rangers, to discuss strategy. A cold air blew down the bridge.

She looked down at the water, thinking back to a weather forecast she'd seen earlier that day. Large waves and surges of water were to be expected.

Turning down to the water, she saw some of the upsets begin to take shape. Jarred appeared in front of her.

"Alice, let's do this, you and I," he said with a smile.

"No," she said.

"Then what?" he asked.

"Then nothing," Alice said.

He lunged towards her, grabbing her face. She pushed him away, his head hitting the side of the bridge. He felt himself slipping, almost falling over.

"You'll be my next conquest," he sighed. "Ninja Storm! Ranger Form! Ha!" he called out, morphing into the black ranger, and attacking her.

"Ninja Storm! Ranger Form! Ha!" she called out, initiating her morphing sequence. "Power of Fire!" she exclaimed, transforming into the pink ranger.

She began to fight with Jarred.

* * *

Jasec stood on the top of a building, looking up at Blue Bay Harbour.

"I'm the lowest kind of divine, the lowest kind of powerful," he sighed. "I'm under a lot, but I won't be under Jarred." He smiled. "He's given me the push I needed," he added, before whistling, calling down a heavenly light.

The other six rangers were making their way down the street, when Jasec ran up to them, along with a group of five similar looking people. They had outfits that resembled his, and wing mounted to their backs.

"These are my classmates," Jasec sighed. "Together, we're going to destroy every trace of you losers."

"Why?" Shane asked, clenching his fists.

"Because we know what we have to do to get what we want," Jasec said.

"Ready?" Shane asked. The other five nodded. The rangers morphed, and charged off against Jasec and his team, holding their ground for a moment.

The winged fighters began studying the rangers' moves immediately, countering them and striking critical blows.

* * *

The King lay on his living room floor, staring out at his view screen, watching the footage of the team. His girlfriend, The Queen, walked up to him.

"What are you looking at?" she asked, sitting down next to him.

"It's the fight, between the rangers and the other guys," he sighed. "I, uh, I wanted to join the fight, but I was waiting to see what side was winning."

"This is an important thing, okay, when these guys fight, people's lives hang in the balance, on both sides," she reminded him.

"So?" he asked, throwing his hands up in the air.

"You can't just…bet on who wins, that irresponsible," she sighed. "I'm not letting you fight these rangers, or the other guys."

"Fine," he sighed. "Can I at least call Jarred's mother?"

"Why?" The Queen asked.

"I think she'd want to know what her son's been up to," he explained. "I might not have a stake in this fight, but she does."

"Fine," she said. "Where'd you even get all of this footage."

"Jarred likes to keep taps on everyone, the prick," The King said. "He's...a dangerous man."

"You don't need to tell me about dangerous men," The Queen sighed.

"Do you know what happens when I demigod dies?" he asked his girlfriend, sitting up straight and looking her in the eyes.

"The gods get angry," she said. "I read all the old legends too."

* * *

As the rangers began to adjust, their opponents started switching up targets. Im minutes, the rangers fell to the ground.

Jasec signaled his team, who dispersed. Jasec looked up at the world around him, and smiled.

Hunter, trying to get up, looked down at his phone, seeing he had a missed call from Alice, who was struggling with Jarred. He pressed himself against her

"Alice is is trouble," he groaned before collapsing on the ground with his teammates. The rest of them tried to get up, failing aswell. Jasec wandered off.

Hunter made his way to his feet, and morphed, running up to Alice, who was still grappling with Jarred.

He ran up to Jarred, and then two of them wrestled. They slipped, falling over the edge and from the bridge to the water below. Hunter cried out. They continued wrestling, splashing about. A surge of water came between them, knocking them away from eachother.

"Hunter!" Alice called out, into the water.

Jarred checked his morpher, seeing it ruined by the water. He tapped it, and it didn't respond. Swimming up to the mostly unconscious Hunter, he grabbed his hand, and ripped the functional morpher from him, strapping it onto his own wrist.

He laughed, and he swam to shore, tossing the crimson ranger aside. Another surge of water hit Hunter.

Alice ran around the area, looking for a way to the bottom of the bridge. She saw her teammates, defeated on the ground. Jasec walked up to them.

"Alice, there you are! Hunter and Jarred are gone, we can be together now!" he exclaimed, reaching out to her.

"No!" she said, backing away.

"I know you like nobody else," he said. He closed his eyes, and touched her shoulder, and she was a vision into his mind. She saw fire.

He compelled her to close her eyes, and the two of them concentrated on each other. She tried to mentally overpower him, but she felt him in her mind.

"No," she sighed. "Get out."

"We're together in this," he said.

Alice felt him, feeling his mind, and then approached his mind, entering it fully; she remembered the first time they kissed, and how she backed away, and he did the same. She thought about how, as their lips touched, his wings rose, and began to glow.

He felt the feathers on his wings falling off, the mechanisms holding them in place becoming visible, the bones connecting them to his spine exposed.

"What's going on?" he asked, his voice fading momentarily. He felt the scales on his neck vanishing.

"If we're mentally linked, I can influence you, and your powers, just as you can influence me," she said. He felt himself falling to the ground, and grabbed her hips, as he kneeled in the ground in front of her.

Alice saw a flash of light, and then the crimson ranger, pulling Jasec off of her.

"Don't worry," he said, in a deep voice. "I'm here for you."

"Hunter?" she asked. "Is that you?"

He de-morphed to reveal Jarred. "The two of us were separated by a wave, and so be both tried to swim to the land," he explained. "I found him, and my morpher broke, so I took his. Then, I kicked him out further."

"Get away from me," Alice said.

"You'll be safe if you're with me," Jarred said. A bullet shot up to him, hitting him in the leg. "Ah!" he cried out, falling to the ground.

Alice looked up, and saw Jarred's mother, Agatha.

Jasec slipped away.

"What are you doing here?" Alice asked.

"Someone called me," Agatha said. "He had information about my son, and that he was stirring trouble here. I got a gun, and came as soon as I could, to put a stop to him."

She buried the pistol in her pocket. An ambulance charged up to them.

"That's for Jarred," she added.

"You called an ambulance?" Alice asked.

"Of course, he's my son," Agatha said. "I wanted to stop him, not destroy him. Jay…he's special."

"How much do you know?" Alice asked.

"Enough to know what to do," Agatha explained.

"I'll never understand this family," Alice sighed. She grabbed Hunter's morpher, then stepped away, joining her teammates.

"Should we stay to see this out?" Tori asked.

"I don't think so," Alice said.

She walked over to her teammates, helping them up. They made their way over to Ninja Ops.

"So, what are we doing about Jarred?" Blake asked.

"Well, he's going to the hospital, and there's a bullet in him," Tori sighed. "So we don't have to worry."

"Maybe Jasec's the real threat," Shane said. Dustin nodded. The two of them sat down in the sand, next to each other.

"Well, I think Lothor's our biggest problem," Tori said, sitting down with Shane and Dustin.

"We should look for Hunter," Cam said. Alice turned to him nodded.

"How?" Tori asked. The rest of the team shrugged.

"He was abandoned in the ocean, without his morpher," Alice noted.

"He's probably, like, super worried," Dustin sighed. He walked over to Sensei. "What do we do?" he asked.

Sensei looked down at the ring.

"One of you needs to capture Jasec in this ring," he sighed.

Shane and Tori stepped forward. "I'll do it!" they said together. They turned to each other.

"Maybe we could both do it," Tori suggested. "Like, one of us lures him, then the other one captures him."

"I'll do the luring," Shane said. "I'm the leader, he's probably expecting me to lead the charge."

"What about Hunter?" Alice asked.

"The matter of Hunter will work itself out in time," Sensei said. "Also, you must be careful with the ring. It will contain Jasec, but it will not stop his power."

"Okay," Shane sighed, taking the ring, and handing it to Tori. "We will."

"We should start looking for Hunter in the meantime, the longer we wait, the harder it'll be," Blake said.

Cam walked over to the computer.

"I'll start tracking him, you guys find Jasec and confront him, let's end this," he sighed.

The five of them made their way around the city, looking for Jasec. They split up, and Alice found herself wandering into an abandoned alleyway. Standing there, drenched in water, was Hunter.

"Hunter?" she asked.

"I've been looking for you," he said, walking up to her. He hugged her. "I was making my way up to Ninja Ops..someone took my phone and morpher."

"Jarred.." Alice sighed, as she handed them back to him. "But you don't have to worry about Jarred anymore."

"What happened?" Hunter asked.

"He got shot," she sighed. "What happened to you."

"The weather conditions...the water sucked me in," Hunter sighed. "And as I sank further and further, I felt hands all around me. Mermaid hands. And they saved me."

She hugged him tighter. "I'm glad you're okay," she sighed. She called the team together to show that Hunter was back.

Jasec approached the seven of them, along with his entourage.

"It seems that now is as good a time as any to demolish you," he sighed.

"Why are you doing this?" Hunter asked.

"You were right," Jasec said. "I am a part of this fight. We're just on different sides."

Alice walked up to him, tearing up. She morphed.

Shane signalled Tori, and the two of them got ready to take him out.

"It's Lothor and Jarred," Alice said. "They've gotten into your head, made you think this is the right thing to do. They've made you think that this is the right thing to become. You don't have to listen to them."

"I don't have to listen to you either," he said, pushing her to the ground. The other ranges morphed and made their way up to him, and his team of angels blocked them.

Shane ran up to Jasec. "I'm going to recapture you!" he said, holding out his hand. He slapped it, then jumped on him. Tori came up behind him, hitting him. She slammed the ring onto his head, and slowly he felt absorbed by it. The rest of the rangers fought with the rest of their adversaries.

"No!" Jasec said, falling to he ground. "I'm not a person..I'm not like Jarred. I won't be treated like this."

"You need to be stopped," Alice said. She gazed into the abyss of his eyes.

"We could be beautiful together," he said to her. "We could be immortal together."

The ring began to glow as it fully absorbed Jasec. Fire spread all around them, and Alice reached out, guiding and containing it.

Shane caught the ring, holding it tight in his hand, and he and Tori embraced for a moment, before going to face the rest of their attackers, who began to back away after seconds of fighting without Jasec's lead.

"If he's gone...we don't want to fight you," one of them sighed. "It was his fight, it was ugly, and it is over." The rest of them nodded.

They teleported away.

The rangers made their way back to Ninja Ops, and handed the ring back to Sensei, as they explained what had happened.

"I am very proud of the work you've done today," he sighed. "Rest. We'll pick this up in the morning."

"What's going to happen to Jarred?" Blake asked.

"I will see into it," Sensei said.

"He has some contacts working at his hospital," Cam said. "And he's powerless, so we just have to call the police on him, and he'll go to prison."

"Where he'll hopefully be for a long, long time," Alice sighed, crossing her arms.

"And, uh, Jasec?" Dustin asked.

Sensei looked down at the ring. "We will contain him while we figure out how to rehabilitate and help him," he said.

"A few down, a few to go," Shane said.

"Well, more than a few," Tori said. "Lothor probably has more tricks up his sleeves."

"Not to mention, um, the King's still pretty dangerous," Dustin said. "I don't really understand his deal."

"None of us do," Blake sighed.

"Soon enough," Hunter said.

"Hopefully," Cam said.

Alice walked up to the ring. "Can we use Jasec's power from the ring?" she asked.

"Unfortunately not," Sensei sighed. "All of it's previous users found out quickly how dangerous it was. It would be best to learn from their experiences, and not wait for our own."

"I understand," she sighed.


	8. Magic

The rangers were in Ninja Ops, discussing their recent battles. Alice walked up to the ring they'd caught Jasec in.

"Can we use Jasec's power from the ring?" she asked.

"Unfortunately not," Sensei sighed. "All of it's previous users found out quickly how dangerous it was. It would be best to learn from their experiences, and not wait for our own."

"I understand," she said.

The King watched them through the cameras Jarred had planted in Ninja Ops. He was on his computer in his kitchen table. He walked up to the other side of his room, and grabbed his whip, cracking it.

"I'm still not finished with it," he sighed. The Queen looked over at him. She was eating cereal at the table.

"You're gonna steal that ring again?" The Queen asked.

"Yeah, but I'm not gonna wear it this time, I'll get some random guy," The King sighed.

"Like who?" The Queen asked.

"Maybe Alice's friend, Chris," he sighed, walking up to her. "I could steal him from the hospital. He's already vulnerable, we could do whatever we want with him." He looked down at his whip.

"That could be interesting," she said. "I can't really think of a better use for the ring."

"I'll get the stopper," he sighed, walking over to a desk in his living room. He picked up a round device with several spike attached, then walked back to his girlfriend.

"Is that the thing that goes back in time?" she asked.

"No, it just stops time for a few seconds," The King said. "We need to break into Ninja Ops when nobody's around, and then get back out before we alert any alarms."

"That sounds risky," The Queen said, as she went back to her cereal. "Maybe you should do it by yourself."

He set the stopper down, then called in his servants. They stopped by the apartment to pick up the stopper, then made their way over to Ninja Ops, retrieving the ring. Afterwards, they went by the hospital, stealing Chris, before returning to the apartment, placing the ring on his finger.

"Thank you," The King sighed, dismissing the servants. He looked down at Chris. "He's weak, and vulnerable, and Jasec has grown in power. He's probably plague the boy's mind in seconds."

"Be careful," The Queen said.

Chris began to wake up. His physical features adjusted slightly, becoming similar to Jasec's, in a sense.

"Where am I?" he asked.

"Our apartment," The Queen said. "You work for us now."

"I don't understand...I want to leave," Chris said. He looked around the room.

"You're just a...person," The Queen said. "You have to understand, you're part of something larger now."

"What's that?" Chris asked, pointing to a bucket of objects on the other side of the kitchen.

"That's the magic bucket, there's a whole bunch of stuff there," The Queen sighed.

The King and The Queen sat at the kitchen table, and watched as Chris rifled through the bucket. He picked out a pocket watch.

"Fascinating," Chris sighed, giving off a faint smile.

"This is kinda weird," The Queen said.

"What was your first hint?" The King asked.

Chris swung the pocket watch in front of his face, and his eyes started to become more abstract.

"What's going on?" The King asked.

"He's hypnotizing himself," The Queen realized.

"How is that even possible?" The King asked, standing up and pointing at him.

The Queen yanked him back to the ground. "He's kinda-sorta two people. They're hypnotizing each other," she explained.

"Oh no," The King sighed. The two of them crawled over to him.

"Alice," he mumbled. "Alice.." he mumbled slightly louder.

"Well, I don't know what's going on now," The Queen sighed.

"One wanted companionship, the other power, and they both found it in the same place, Alice, who isn't actually a place so much as a person," he realized. "So, with their brains thinking about what the other one wants, because of the hypnosis. This combination of the two therefore thinks about a lot of things, but they both like Alice, so he thinks about Alice, more than anything else."

"I wonder what would happen if you tried erasing the Alice from this brain," The Queen said.

"You think that's really a good idea?" The King asked.

"Well, if we do nothing we'll be left with another asshole with a dangerous obsession with Alice Wood," The Queen noted.

"I'll get the mind erasing kit," The King said, walking to the other side of the living room.

"My gods are getting angry tonight," The Queen sighed.

He started hooking Chris up to the machinery. "How much do you want to mess with the brain while we're erasing Alice?" he asked The Queen, walking back to her.

"No more than necessary," The Queen said. "Free will, and all that good stuff."

"Fine," The King sighed. He cracked his whip again.

"Stop doing that," The Queen said.

"Why?" he asked.

"You've got no reason to," The Queen said. "It's not like you're using it. I don't even get why you use it most of the time. It's a whip, it's not a good weapon."

"You suggested it to me," The King reminded her.

"I did?" she asked, squinting.

"When we were, like, sixteen," he sighed. He set the whip down. "And before you ask, I'm just putting it down for a moment, I'm not putting it down for good."

He walked up to Chris.

"Hey man," Chris said, slowly rising. "Can you, uh, can you get me the pocket watch."

"Get it yourself," The King said. Chris got up and walked into the living room, getting the pocket watch. He looked down at the magic bucket, picking out a few other items as well. He walked back into the kitchen.

"You okay, there, Chris?" The Queen asked.

"Don't call me Chris anymore," he sighed.

"What do you want to be called?" The King asked.

"I'll figure it out," he said. "I can use these tools, right?"

"Yeah, as long as you don't use them for anything against our interests," The Queen said.

"I'll send you money monthly, in exchange you'll do work for me and my associates," The King said, walking up to him. "You're always on call, and when I say always, I mean always."

"Is that all?" he asked.

"You look terrible," The King said, walking over to his girlfriend.

The man pulled out a mirror, one of the items he'd grabbed, and checked his face. It was bloody and scarred. He sighed, as he touched, then walked into the bathroom to get something to clean it up with. He set the items he'd grabbed in his pocket, then splashed cold water on his face. He looked at his hair, disorganized and overgrown in places; he started looking for shaving equipment. He gazed into the eyes of the bathroom mirror reflection, partially brown, partially void. He winked.


	9. Alice

Alice made her way over to her bed, tired and drunk, the days of fighting Jarred and Jasec having turned into a night of celebration.

 _Where'd Agatha get the gun_ , she wondered? _Why did she use it on her son? Why? Was Jarred really that screwed up?_

After thinking about his mother, she started thinking about her own mother, and her strength. Then her thoughts turned to Hunter's mother.

She collapsed on her bed and closed her eyes, a vision of his mom appearing in front of her.

"You did a good job," she said. "Stay true to yourself, and remember the lesson."

After a few seconds, she woke up momentarily, and as she tried to go back to sleep, she thought more about Hunter. She got a lump in her throat, thinking about how he almost died. She went down to her kitchen, pouring a glass of water. After drinking it, she sat atop her bed, and pulled out a book on angels she'd bought for herself.

She started flicking through the pages, reading about the different kinds, about the ones with wings made of glitter, and the ones with wings made of ash. Some lived in hells full of fire, and some held fire in their minds. Others had fire in the fingers. One set of pages featured a short story, about an angel in love, worried about becoming a nephilim. She yawned, closing the book after reading the story, and laid down, the book next to her, the covers under her.

"A push can accomplish a lot, but I can't control everything," she muttered to herself, as she drifted off to sleep.

Months Later…

Tori, Shane, and Blake were hanging out at Storm Chargers, sitting on the couch. Tori and Blake were tight together, hands joined. They smiled at each other.

Alice walked up to them, sitting next to Tori. She walked quickly, taking deep breaths, and she was taking feathers out of her hair.

"Is everything okay?" Tori asked.

"Just a bird flying by," she sighed, shaking her head, the feathers falling to the floor. "I just got a new haircut too.." Her hair had grown, and she'd cut it, but not as much as before. It was a bit darker too, looking slightly like it'd been burned.

"All of these feathers kinda reminded me of Jasec, although Jasec was, well, Jasec," Alice said, chuckling. Her hands fell to her sides. "Jasec the angel."

"Do you think Jasec was really an angel?" Tori asked, moving closer to her.

"No," Alice sighed, slumping down in the couch. "Angels aren't real, as far as I can tell."

"They make for good stories, though," Shane pointed out.

"Do you think we'll see him again?" Blake asked, perking his head up to look at Alice more.

"Probably not," she said, throwing her arms up. "If it was the King who took the ring back, which it probably was, he destroyed him this time around. The guy is ruthless. I should know."

"What does that mean?" Blake asked.

"I mean, all the times he's come after me…not like he's ever…done anything to me, but still," Alice said.

She got up, and walked over to a water bottle she'd set at the counter earlier that day. "He's dangerous," she added.

"We'll destroy him, with the rest of them," Shane said. "Zurgane, Mystic, Shimazu.."

"I know," Alice said, before chugging some of the water.

"Do you think _Jarred_ might bounce back?" Tori asked, facing Blake and Shane. "I mean, he keeps picking up and..."

"Maybe," Alice sighed, resting her back against the counter. Tori nodded.

Shane checked his phone, seeing a text from Dustin. He got up.

"Where are you going?" Blake asked, looking up at him.

"I'm gonna talk to Dustin, he just texted," Shane said, gesturing the door.

"What'd he say?" Tori asked, turning to Shane.

"Nothing much, just some personal stuff," Shane stated, with a shrug. "Nothing serious, though."

"Cool," Tori said, nodding.

Shane walked off. Alice shrugged, before finishing the bottle, and throwing it into the recycling bin.

Blake turned to Tori, moving closer to her. "What are you doing later?" he asked.

"Nothing," she said softly, resting her head against his. "I'm free until...tomorrow morning. A bunch of us are going to that, um, meditation class."

"You want to go back to mine?" Blake asked, gesturing to the door. She nodded. They walked out together, Alice giving a cursory wave away, Tori reciprocating.

"Love you," Alice heard Blake say as the couple exited.

"Same here," Tori said. They kissed once more, with feeling, before leaving the pink rangers' sight.

Alice went to her phone, looking through her text messages.

* * *

Cam ( **3** unread )

* * *

He'd taken a lot of time to help her develop her powers; he was working on a new weapon to better utilize them.

* * *

Cam: I have it pretty much finished.

Cam: Can you come in tomorrow afternoon?

Cam: Noon.

Alice: Okay, sure ;)

Cam: Thanks.

* * *

Hunter walked up to Alice. She kissed her boyfriend on his cheek.

"Hey, Alice, are you ready for our date?" he asked, holding his hand up to her face. He brushed off some hair caught on her face

"Yeah," Alice said, smiling. "Although, I'm not sure where I want to go."

Hunter sighed, craning his neck. "Well, there's…"

"I mean, I have an idea, but I'm not sure if you'll like it," she explained, gesturing with her hands.

"Where?" Hunter asked, stiff.

"The place I went to with Chris," Alice said. "I was there by myself earlier and I thought I'd feel weird but I…don't anymore."

"Sure," Hunter said, with a shrug.

"Is it weird I don't feel weird anymore?" Alice asked.

"No," Hunter said. He set his hands on her shoulders and kissed her forehead. "We'll find Chris, I promised."

Alice smiled. Hunter crouched down and kissed her stomach, smiling more.

"Hunter," she said, chuckling. "People are looking."

"What's gonna happen to them?" he asked..

"Let's go," Alice said, giggling. He got up, pulling out his hand, and she grabbed it, the two of them walking off together.

 **The End**


End file.
